Kyo rushed back to the band room and burst in. He found the brothers seated beside Iori, looking as if they were trying to comfort him in some way.
"Yashiro got away, he went into the hall," Kyo informed. "And I didn't wanna make a scene." He went over to the three. "Is he okay? Yagami, you okay?"
Iori turned his head to face him, making Kyo let out a yelp in surprise upon noticing his eyes.
"Oh my gosh..." Kyo gasped. "Is he... oh no... not now!"
"Yashiro attacking him must've triggered it," Kay stated solemnly. "He tried to attack us at first, but he seems to recognise us now."
"It also seemed like he was afraid that he would attack us, poor guy..." Zayn remarked as he rubbed circles on Iori's back. "I think he managed to get some control."
Kyo grimly took his phone out to call someone. "Aiko? Can you get to the band room ASAP? Your brother... he's not quite himself... again..."
Aiko gasped when she heard the news. She didn't even bother stuffing her phone into her pocket as she bolted towards the band room, her phone still in hand. Masaomi and Kazuhiro noticed her suddenly running off while her brother wasn't anywhere in sight too.
"Where is she going?" Masaomi asked.
"Aiko!" Kazuhiro called when she ran past the door beside them. But she seemed like she didn't even hear him, running off without sparing a glance.
"Looks like something's wrong," Masaomi said. "We should follow her."
He got up and ran off without waiting for Kazuhiro's reply. The younger brother didn't have much of a choice but to run after them as well, leaving the welcome goodie bags on their seats and telling Maxima to watch them so that no one would sit there.
Iori lunged towards Kyo as soon as he hung up. Kyo leapt away in fear, backing away from him as far as possible. The redhead suddenly let out a shriek and made his way towards the door, completely ignoring Kyo and his pleas for mercy.
That surprised him.
"Wait... he didn't attack me..." Kyo pointed out, puzzled. "But where is he going?"
They all turned to see Iori clawing at the door in a desperate attempt to escape. It was obvious that he still wasn't thinking straight since all he had to do was turn the handle to open the door.
He might have figured it out sooner or later, but it seemed like he wasn't given the chance to. The door burst open with such force that Iori was thrown to the wall, flat behind the door.
It was Aiko. She stepped in and frantically looked around for her brother, but all she spotted were the three surprised faces of their friends.
"Where's Niisan?" Aiko asked, looking around.
The three just pointed behind her. Aiko turned around just in time to see her brother cowering away to hide in a pile of sparkly costumes from the previous years' performances.
"Niisan!" Aiko called, going after him. She somehow managed to catch him and pulled him out. "What happened to you, Niisan?"
"He's aware of what's happening despite being in that state," Kay informed. "He recognised us."
Zayn nodded. "He's even scared that he'll attack us."
To their surprise, Iori was trying to cover his face, howling miserably. Aiko frowned knowingly and pulled him by the shoulders, shaking him slightly. "Come on, Niisan. Don't be like this. I know you're scared and all, but you have to calm down!"
Tears streamed out of his eyes as he regarded her, his mouth slightly agape to let out a whimper. Aiko noticed how a dribble of blood stained his nostrils as well as his upper lip.
"Who did this to him?" Aiko asked, turning to the rest. "It looks like someone punched him in the face!"
Kyo nodded. "Yashiro. We spotted him running off. Yagami must've wiped the floor with him."
Aiko smiled slightly and turned to her brother. "You did, didn't you, Niisan?"
She was responded with manic laughter.
"Of course, you did," Aiko chuckled. She pulled him into a hug and patted his dishevelled hair to soothe him. "It's okay, Niisan, don't worry about it. The event hasn't even started yet. There's been a delay since some VIP is stuck in the blizzard. They won't start until they've arrived. Take your time to calm down. Don't you worry."
She closed her eyes and sang a short verse of a song they both loved.
Never say goodbye ever again;
I'll remember you when I look at the moon in the starry sky,
Wishing you were here, beside me.
No matter how far faith pulls us apart;
My heart will always be longing for you deep within.
Shining every night.
"Reaching for the moon," Zayn continued, much to everyone's surprise. Kyo and Kay turned to frown at him. "What, I like that song too."
They just ignored him and turned back to the redheads. Iori eventually stopped trembling, letting out a ragged breath as he slumped onto his sister's shoulder. Aiko pulled away from him but was alarmed when he rolled to the side, his eyes fully shut.
"Niisan!" Aiko gasped, lifting him onto her lap. "Niisan, wake up!"
But he just laid there, motionless. The others rushed over to see too and saw how pale Iori looked, his face covered in a film of sweat though the band room was fully air-conditioned. Kay took hold of his wrist and sighed.
"His pulse is quick, but it's slowing," Kay informed. He grasped onto Iori's hand and spoke. "Iori, if you can hear me, squeeze my hand."
"I don't think so, Dash, he looks out cold," Zayn remarked.
But Iori did. He grabbed Kay's hand as tightly as he could till the latter nearly withdrew in surprise.
"He can hear us," Kay remarked, lifting his hand to show the rest. "He's having a blackout, he's not unconscious."
Aiko pointed at her bag. "I have water in my bag's side pocket. I didn't drink the mineral water from earlier since I brought my own water."
Kyo nodded and rushed over to the small purple backpack to pull out the miniature mineral water bottle. He unscrewed the cap and splashed some water onto the redhead's face. Iori seemed unresponsive during the first attempt, but his face twitched during the second, and his eyes fluttered open after the third.
"Niisan?" Aiko asked, wiggling his face.
Iori gently pushed her hand away and sat up, running a hand down his wet face. "Darn... that felt like a lucid dream."
"Niisan!" Aiko exclaimed as she hugged him.
Iori smiled and hugged her back. He pulled away and turned to his friends. "Guys, I'm sorry for that scare. I don't know what happened."
"It's fine," Zayn shook his head. "You didn't even attack us."
"Yeah, but..." Iori groaned. "I almost did, didn't I..."
"We're not sure about that, but it seemed like you gained some of your senses," Kay added. "You were scared that you'd attack us."
"I didn't want to harm my friends, I somehow managed to take control and back away," Iori smiled tiredly and sighed before turning to Kyo. "Kyo? Sorry I scared you. I didn't try to attack, right?"
Kyo shook his head. "I thought you were going to, but you didn't."
Aiko turned her brother's face towards hers, wearing a slight frown as she inspected him. "We need to get you cleaned up. You're bleeding, and your eyes are starting to swell."
"Oh no... and I have to perform and receive awards too," Iori groaned.
Kay smirked. "I have an idea." He whipped out a pair of red-tinted sunglasses and handed them to him. "Here, wear these."
"Thanks, Dash," Iori nodded as he took it.
Aiko reached for the emergency kit in her bag and pulled out a pack of wet wipes. "Niisan, get over here."